New Mexico cannabis regulators have ordered another product recall over the use of unapproved pesticides. Meanwhile, state lawmakers are looking to expand the Regulations and Licensing Department’s (RLD) power of enforcement with a new bill that could make it easier for regulators to spot bad actors early.
It seems like every month, state regulators find another company that fails to follow the rules. According to a recent announcement from the state’s Cannabis Control Division (CCD), regulation agents found prohibited pesticides in cannabis pre-rolls and roll-your-own products sold by JBS Technologies NM (Stash House) to various retailers between Jan. 1 and Nov. 25 of this year. Authorities are advising anyone who believes they may have bought a tainted product to destroy it or return it to the retailer for proper disposal.
The products were sold under the brands Drool and Stone Road and included two-gram blunts of Nightmare Cookies, Wedding Punch, Rainbow Dream and Blue Dream; and the 14-gram RYO Forbidden Star Fruit. They were sold at a large number of dispensaries in Albuquerque and across the state (the full list is available at the RLD website).
According to the CCD, lab tests revealed that these products were contaminated with the banned pesticide spinosyn. Although prohibited by the state for use in growing marijuana, spinosyn is a nature-based insecticide with low mammalian toxicity — meaning it’s considered mostly safe for humans when used in the recommended amounts.
Stash House was ordered to alert all of its customers about the recall and instruct them to destroy the tainted products as well as send the CCD an action report.
This is the third mandatory recall ordered by the CCD this year. In September, the division ordered a recall on flower from Maggie’s Farm that tested positive for pyrethrins — another banned insecticide. And in March the CCD recalled a number of products sold at Got Greens for containing the prohibited pesticide malathion.
The CCD has been plagued with out-of-compliance operators since recreational dispensaries opened their doors in 2022. But over the last year, under the guidance of CCD Director Todd Stevens, the division has prioritized enforcing regulation compliance. It hired more compliance personnel and increased onsite inspections across the state.
“The Cannabis Control Division is committed to ensuring cannabis products in New Mexico are safe for consumers,” Stevens tells The Paper. “Our team works through each recall closely and will continue to inform the public about products that contain potentially harmful contaminants including unapproved pesticides that are unsuitable for consumption.”
But state inspectors are currently limited in how they can respond to violations. They can report them to their superiors, leading to fees and other punishments, but they have no authority to seize or destroy products.
In October, the RLD requested that lawmakers provide more money to the department to hire 10 more inspectors and seven special agents with law enforcement authority to “hold unlicensed operators and criminal law violators accountable.” It also called for the expansion of the department’s powers to include the ability to embargo, seize and destroy illicit, adulterated or misbranded cannabis.
Now, lawmakers are looking to expand regulators’ powers with a bill that’s expected to be introduced in the legislature. The proposed bill would create a Compliance Bureau staffed with certified law enforcement compliance inspectors. These inspectors would be authorized by the state to seize illegal weed products.
The inspectors would be responsible for marking illegal products and explaining the alleged violations to the responsible licensees. Those licensees would be given 10 business days to request a hearing with the CCD to determine if the products are legal or not. If not, then the division would have the authority to destroy them. If a licensee tries to destroy or move marked products, they will face being charged with a fourth degree felony.
Compliance inspectors would also be able to arrest unlicensed operators — a problem that is becoming more apparent as time passes. Illicit weed traffickers are taking advantage of legalization and the lack of regulative authority to sell cheap black market weed, placing consumers in danger of using unsafe products while undercutting state-licensed businesses and contributing to the failure of small businesses.
Earlier this year, The Paper. visited an open-air drug market where a large number of illicit operators were brazenly selling low-priced black market cannabis in a setting similar to a farmers market, complete with vendors, a live DJ and souvenir stand. The venue was publicly named in September by KRQE investigative journalist Larry Barker, but it’s unclear if there were any legal repercussions.
In an email to The Paper., state Senator-elect and former RLD Superintendent Linda Trujillo, says: “A dedicated law enforcement bureau within the Regulation and Licensing Department would provide resources to combat the illicit market, which is significantly harming licensees, and support licensing compliance to protect the public.”
Stevens says the division approves of the proposed legislation.
“The CCD is supportive of legislation that would give us the ability to employ certified law enforcement officers to investigate and enforce criminal violations of the Cannabis Regulation Act including allowing the division to embargo, seize, or destroy illicit or adulterated cannabis products,” says Stevens.
Stevens says the division needs more authority to deal with bad actors.
“The CCD currently only has administrative authority concerning the cannabis industry,” says Stevens. “Adding the legal authority, along with trained, commissioned law enforcement staff who are able to investigate suspected criminal acts and enforce criminal laws, would provide the division with valuable tools to combat illicit operators engaging in commercial cannabis activity in New Mexico.”